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2 April, 2002Two IMF affiliates organise industrial action over wage demands.
NETHERLANDS: The IMF-affiliated FNV Bondgenoten and CNV Bedrijvenbond organised strikes in almost all Philips plants throughout the Netherlands on Thursday, March 28. The reason for this massive industrial action was the refusal of Philips - one of the world's biggest electronics companies and Europe's largest, with sales of EUR 32.3 billion (US$28.4 billion) in 2001 - to agree to union demands for a 3.5 per cent pay hike in the new 15-month collective agreement. This wage increase would be necessary to maintain consumer purchasing power, however management is not offering more than 2.5 per cent. The two trade unions say that while top management at Philips is earning big money from stock options and bonuses, it does not want to give a decent wage increase to the workers. The unions handed out pamphlets with messages about management's behaviour at a Philips shareholder meeting in Amsterdam on the day of their strike action. Messages of solidarity can be sent by e-mail to the unions' joint action center on: [email protected] with a copy to: [email protected] and to [email protected].